I just purchased the predator for my 2003 E-350 V-10. I'm just looking for some extra HP and firmer shifts. I made the mistake of ordering the truck with a 373 rear and have never been thrilled with around town power.The truck is totally stock.

Anyway I just have a few questions for you guys. I can get 91 or 93 octane locally. Is the 93 a no-brainer to get true results out of these tuners. I don't mind taking it on the chin at the pump to get the most out of this $300 investment. It's not a high milage vehicle.

I was also wondering about the custom tuning process with this tuner. The manual is pitiful at best so I suppose that means the tuner is very intuitive for those of us who aren't technically savvy. I don't know much about some of those custom settings the say the tuner can change. I guess I'm hoping that once I select the octane/performance setting the rest will be simple.

Thanks for any feedback as I'm going to try this tuner in a couple of days and I'm looking to avoid any potential problems.

 

Yes, 93 is the no-brainer for the most power. You'll get some out of the 87 octane tune, but not much (only the 5.4L V8 on 2004+ F150 sees huge gains with 87 octane).

Bump the timing up 1 degree at a time until you get engine ping, and then back it off 1 degree. You'll get the most power out of it this way, but may need to adjust for winter/summer temps with this method.

Leave the air/fuel ratio alone, unless you have access to a wide-band O2 sensor. Take the wide open throttle shift points up a couple hundred RPM higher than stock for optimal shifting as well, and shift firmess to suit your tastes (never go softer than stock firmness on the shifts, it will result in wearing out the clutches too fast, only increase firmness over stock).

 

Thanks Ken. I did the 93 performance stock tune and took it for a ride. I noticed a gain in power but thought the shifting was still soft. It seems that you can adjust individual parameters while still keeping the overall stock(performance not custom) tune. I re-did it while increasing shift firmness and noticed improvement. I didn't touch the WOT settings but you're recommending I raise them so I'll tinker with that as well.

Anyway I have to drive my truck a bit more to form a final opinion on this tuner but so far it seems pretty good. If you or anyone who uses the Diablo has any suggestions on the settings within the stock program I'd love to hear them. My unit is the U7152.

 

I'm still finding my way with this predator. The V-10 feels at least 30HP stronger and the transmission shift firmness is improved. I was just wondering what settings would be most relative to downshifting. I still find the tranny a little slow to downshift especially when in overdrive. If you guys can bear with me I'm going to list the current set-up.

1) Torque Modulation: In the middle for all shifts

2)Shift pressure: In the middle for all shifts

3)Shift Point:1 to 2 4,300 RPM, 2 to 3 4,900 RPM, 3 to 4 4,300 RPM

4)Rev Limit: 5,600 RPM

5)WOT Fuel: 1K-3K towards lean setting, 3.5K-6K also lean setting

6)Global Spark Adaptor 0 degrees, Spark Advance 1K-2.5K currently advanced, 3K-6K currently advanced

One thing for sure is I'm going to need to keep my foot out of the radiator. I'm getting obscene milage now but I imagine that will improve when I stop having so much fun with the V-10. It's even got a little growl to it that it didn't have as these V-10's are so quiet.